Max dowman

Mikel Arteta: Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted that his side were guilty of naive defending, which ultimately cost them in a 3-2 friendly defeat to Villarreal - their second consecutive pre-season loss.

After opening their pre-season campaign with wins over AC Milan and Newcastle United, Arsenal suffered a setback against Tottenham Hotspur and followed it up with another defeat on Wednesday, going 2-0 down within the first 33 minutes at the Emirates Stadium against the Spanish side.

"I think the result is painful. I think they were super efficient but we've been naive, especially the way we have defended in open spaces and that's something that, especially the way we play, we have to absolutely nail," Arteta told reporters. "Today we haven't been good at all in that department and that has cost us the game for sure."